- Helvécio Martins
__NOTOC__Helvécio Martins (
27 July 1930 –14 May 2006 ) was the firstLatter-day Saint ofAfrica n descent to be called as ageneral authority ofThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).Born to descendants of African slaves in
Rio de Janeiro ,Brazil , Martins joined the LDS Church in 1972, despite his knowledge that the LDS Church did not then allow members of African descent to hold the priesthood or to receive temple ordinances.On
9 June 1978 , Martins and his family heard of the announcement that the LDS Church was lifting its racial priesthood ban. After Martins received the priesthood and received his temple ordinances, he served as a bishop, a counselor to astake president , and as amission president for the BrazilFortaleza Mission.In April 1990, Church President
Ezra Taft Benson called Martins as a member of theSecond Quorum of the Seventy . Martins thus became the first blackgeneral authority in LDS Church history.Having served the standard five-year term as a member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy, Martins was honorably released as a general authority on
30 September 1995 . He died in Brazil at age 75.Shortly before retiring, Martins dictated his life story which was published as "The Autobiography of Elder Helvecio Martins". [Helvecio Martins and Mark Grover, ""The Autobiography of Elder Helvecio Martins" (Aspen Books, 1994, ISBN 1-56236-218-6).]
Martins' son
Marcus Martins is currently the chair of the department of religion atBrigham Young University-Hawaii .See also
*
1978 Revelation on Priesthood
*Blacks and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Notes
References
* [http://lds.org/portal/site/LDSOrg/menuitem.b12f9d18fae655bb69095bd3e44916a0/?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=57142150a447b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1 "News of the Church: Elder Helvécio Martins of the Seventy"] , "Ensign", May 1990, 106.
External links
* [http://www.ldsgenesisgroup.org/martins.html Obituary by LDS Genesis Group]
* [http://gapages.com/martih1.htm Grampa Bill's G.A. Pages: Helvécio Martins]
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